Artist who has played with Tom Petty, Chris Stapleton and Fleetwood Mac: “Dare to Dream”

In the video for his latest single “Dare to Dream,” Mike Campbell confidently sings about a life full of promise.

His location: The Church Studio in Tulsa, a place roughly halfway between his longtime home in Los Angeles and the haunts of his youth in North Florida that laid the foundation for a remarkable rock’n’roll career.

The video is a mix of a studio performance by Campbell and his side project, which became his full-time band The Dirty Knobs, and home videos taken decades earlier of the guitarist playing alone and with the band he is most associated with: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

It’s a modest but positive tune, consistent with the upbeat music of Campbell’s just-released third album with The Dirty Knobs, Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits. But the hopeful attitude of Dare to Dream carries considerable weight. It’s a celebration of days to come from an artist who, at 74, has led a truly charmed artistic life.

“The song goes, ‘These are the best times, this is the good life,'” Campbell said by phone last week. “That’s kind of how I feel. Maybe it’s cheeky to write a song like that with all the crap going on in the world right now with politics and war. I thought, ‘You know, I’m just going to make a positive statement about how I feel.’ I think most people can relate to that, to stay positive and think that everything is going to be OK. That’s the message I want to get across.”

Enchanting career with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

A nearly half-century-long alliance with Petty ended in 2017 with the rock titan’s sudden death. Campbell served as lead guitarist for the Heartbreakers throughout their history and co-wrote some of the band’s biggest hits with Petty, including “Refugee,” “A Woman in Love (It’s Not Me),” “You Got Lucky,” “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” “Into the Great Wide Open,” and “You Wreck Me.”

That alone would give Campbell legendary status, a title he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 as a member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

But Campbell has also amassed an incredible dossier of other collaborations over the decades, including recordings with Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, Roy Orbison, Stevie Nicks, John Prine, Joe Cocker, Linda Ronstadt, Don Henley and Neil Diamond.

“Everyone you work with becomes an influence and an inspiration to you,” Campbell said. “I pay attention to them and try to learn from them. They all leave a lasting impression on your musicianship, so I can draw on that experience as I move forward. I appreciate that.”

That experience goes both ways. In addition to The Dirty Knobs, Campbell has met a legion of new-generation artists, some of whom are featured on a recent Petty tribute album featuring a group of young country stars, aptly titled “Petty Country.” One of the record’s highlights is Campbell’s collaboration with Margo Price on “Ways to Be Wicked,” a ’70s song he wrote with Petty. The song wasn’t a Heartbreakers song, but a standout from the 1985 debut album by the short-lived country-rock outfit Lone Justice.

Collaboration with Chris Stapleton, Fleetwood Mac

Campbell’s best-known country colleague was probably Kentucky star Chris Stapleton. In addition to his contribution to “Petty Country,” Stapleton adds even more honky-tonk joy to the snappy “Don’t Wait Up” on the album “Vagabonds” through Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench.

The connection to Stapleton is not new. In 2000, both artists collaborated on each other’s records. Campbell co-wrote two songs with Stapleton for his “Starting Over” album and contributed guitar work to both. Stapleton contributed to two more songs and sang on a third for Campbell’s first Dirty Knobs record, “Wreckless Abandon.” Both albums were released in November of that year, a week apart from each other.

“Chris Stapleton is the greatest right now,” Campbell said. “He’s so talented and so natural. He asked me to write a couple of songs and we became instant friends. I was just in New York and played with him at Giants Stadium. He’s so good. He’s just blessed with one of those voices that is undeniably great. I’m very honored to have him as a friend.”

Perhaps the strangest chapter in Campbell’s wide-ranging career began in 2018, about a year after Petty’s death, when he was asked to fill in for Lindsey Buckingham on Fleetwood Mac’s likely final world tour. Campbell’s ties to the band were already close, having played on eight solo albums by Mac empress Stevie Nicks since 1981.

“That’s an example of my charmed life. So many things have fallen into my lap along the way through luck or whatever. But at the time I fought through it. Tom had died. I was deeply saddened. I’m still grieving. I’ll probably grieve for the rest of my life because he was a big part of my life. Then out of the blue on my birthday I got a call from Mick Fleetwood offering me the job. That came at a really good time for me because it gave me something really high quality to do. And maybe it was something to distract me from just feeling sorry for myself. It was challenging for me but I had a great time. They took me around the world and treated me like royalty. It was pretty much a blessing.”

“We have thwarted a dream”

Of course, any conversation about Campbell’s wondrous career ultimately revolves around one person: Tom Petty. The two were more than just bandmates. They practically grew up together, met in the band Mudcrutch before the Heartbreakers, and played side by side until the Heartbreakers’ final tour ended at the Hollywood Bowl on September 25, 2017. Petty died a week later.

“I always feel his spirit and his shadow on my shoulder, guiding me and reminding me of my dream,” Campbell said. “We both just had the same dream, the same instincts, the same musicality, the same desire and the same style. From the day we met, we were close friends and eventually songwriting partners.”

“We were chasing a dream, to put it in one sentence. We had a dream to make music that we loved, so we just chased it. We complimented each other. We gave each other a partner to cross the river with.”

With “Vagabonds” Campbell is starting a new chapter in his career, and in the new line-up of Dirty Knobs he is working again with the long-time drummer of the Heartbreakers, Steve Ferrone. Saying goodbye to rock’n’roll is not an option for him.

“Retirement is a non-concept for me. I don’t understand it. If for some reason I was no longer physically able to do what I do, I would still be making music at home. Otherwise, I have no idea what retirement is. I would never stop making music. As long as I can play live, I will keep doing it. For me, it is the most spiritually rewarding thing in the world.”

Mike Campbell and The Dirty Knobs

Supporting act: Shannon McNally

When: 27 June, 8pm

Where: Lexington Opera House, 401 W. Short

Tickets: $49.50-$74.50 via ticketmaster.com.

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